Medical aid authority to be established

Published: 10 April 2014

Government is mulling the establishment of an independent regulatory authority to supervise the operations of all medical aid societies.

This was said by the Minister of Health and Child Care Dr David Parirenyatwa when he appeared before the Portfolio Committee on Health and Child Care on Wednesday to give evidence on the status of the Premier Medical Aid Society.

"Our brief is to look forward and say let us put governance structures in place so that our people will benefit.

"We would like to see proper governance structures at PSMAS and at all medical aid societies that is why we are pushing as a ministry that there should be a regulatory body, a regulatory authority.

We do not want us as ministers to interact directly. We want a regulatory authority that regulates all medical aid societies," Dr Parirenyatwa said.

He said PSMAS was a member driven organisation with Government's interest coming in because it provided the bulk of the membership.

Dr Parirenyatwa said board members at PSMAS had abdicated their duties resulting in management getting hefty salaries.

He said a six member committee had been appointed to look at the operations of PSMAS and advice on the way forward.

"We have put up a six member committee which is going to see the legal aspect of putting up an extra-ordinary general meeting or annual general meeting whatever maybe appropriate. This team is going to look at what is happening now and so that they can advise the AGM.

"So there is no vacuum now, what is there is that this team is there and we have advised that there be an audit whether it is a remuneration audit or forensic audit that should be able to say you earned so much how did you earn it? Who gave you permission, we don't want it to be hearsay," he said.

The public spotlight fell on PSMAS when The Herald revealed that the society's former group CEO, Dr Cuthbert Dube, was taking home over US$500 000 monthly when service delivery was declining and debts were mounting.

Other executives at the medical aid society were also earning mega salaries.

The problem was also rampant at parastatals and other state linked companies, resulting in Government putting a US$6 000 salary cap for all Government owned companies.

The move has been welcomed by members of the society who have called on those not happy with the new conditions of service to leave.
- BH24